Onorato, Airport Authority Announce New Frozen Food Facility

MOON TWP. — Allegheny County Chief Executive Dan Onorato and the Allegheny County Airport Authority today announced that LSG Sky Chefs, the world’s largest airline caterer, is expanding its deep-frozen food operations worldwide and has chosen Pittsburgh International Airport as the location of its first deep-frozen food manufacturing facility in North America.

“LSG Sky Chef has been an important tenant at Pittsburgh International Airport, and this expansion of service is an exciting opportunity for our region,” said Onorato. “We’re very pleased that LSG Sky Chef is expanding operations here and adding jobs. It’s a testament to our world-class airport and the commitment we’ve made to develop the airport corridor.”

The manufacturing facility will be located in 20,000 square feet of LSG Sky Chefs’ existing customer service center on airport property and is expected to create 21 new jobs in 2008 and an additional 37 new jobs by 2010. The facility is expected to open in early 2008 with an initial capacity for producing approximately 11 million meals annually, with room to double that production over time.

“Pittsburgh International Airport has the capacity for growth and the perfect proximity for direct shipment of frozen foods,” said Allegheny County Airport Authority Board Chairman Glenn Mahone. “Our location offers access to 63 percent of the national industrial output by overnight truck or one-hour flight. This is just one of Pittsburgh International’s great advantages for cargo and aviation-related industries.”

LSG Sky Chefs chose Pittsburgh International Airport because of the company’s history with the airport, as well as Pittsburgh International’s proximity to major international gateway airports on the East Coast and in the Midwest, which enable direct shipments of deep-frozen foods to those airports.

“We are committed to becoming the leader in the deep-frozen foods segment of the airline catering industry, and Pittsburgh International Airport proved to be a great strategic match for our operating needs,” said Pat Berkelbaugh, Senior Vice President of Sales & Services for LSG Sky Chefs’ North America Region. “We’ve enjoyed a long, positive relationship with Pittsburgh International Airport, and we’re glad to be adding jobs at our Pittsburgh facility.”

LSG Sky Chefs is pursuing this strategy to meet increasing demand for frozen-food meals in the airline industry, driven by cost, quality and consistency for such meals. In addition to growing demand in North America, LSG Sky Chefs announced a joint venture earlier this year with China National Aviation Group Ltd. to establish a frozen meal plant facility in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China, to meet growing demand for deep-frozen foods from airlines in the Asia/Pacific region. These additions will enable the company to build on its already considerable expertise in frozen-food production acquired through its subsidiary, LSG-Sky Food, which opened in Germany in 1994.